Knitting apparatus



April 21, 1925. 1,534,311

R. C. GEBERS KNITTING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 8, 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet lvwemtoz RA NDOLFH EEEBEns 5 sheets-sheet :s

April 21, 1925.

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Patented Apr. 21, 1925.

UNITED STATES RANDOLPH C. GEBER'S, OF EAST ELMHURST, NEW YORK.

KNITTING APPARATUS.

Application filed September 8, 1922. Serial No. 586,873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RANDOLPH C. GEBERs, formerly a citizen of Hungary,and a resident of East Elmhurst, Long Island, in the county of Queensand State of New York, have invented a certain new and, usefulImprovement in Knitting Apparatus, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention relates to a process of manufacturing hosiery and one formof apparatus capable of use therefor and has for its object to producefull-fashioned, fiat, knitted hosiery at less expense, more rapidly,with less waste, and with less complicated machinery than has beenpossible heretofore.

Other objects of my invention will be apparent from the followingdescription and from the accompanying drawings of one embodimentthereof, in which- Figure 1 represents the lower part of the leg and theheel portions of a stocking at the completion of the first stage ofmanufacture in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention,shown for purposes of. illustration with the heel .portion at the leftstill engaged with the needles and with the heel portion at the rightremoved from the needles;

Figure 2 a continuation of the manufacture by one embodiment of thepresent invention of the stocking, shown for purposes of illustrationwith the heel portion at the left disengaged from the foot portion andwith the heel portion at the right sewed to the foot portion;

. Figure 3 a perspective of a portion of the needle bar of a flatknitting machine with one embodiment of the invention appliedthereto; F

Figure 4 a view similar to F igureB with the parts in different positionto illustrate the utilization of the invention;

Figure 5 a section on the line 7-7 of F igure 3 looking in the directionof the arrows;

Figure 6 a section on the line 8-8 of Figure 4 looking in the directionof the arrows.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout thedrawings.

By the present invention, the hose is completed on the leg machinewithout change, thereby saving the time and labor necessary to take thepartly completed hose from the leg machine and place it on the footerand preventing the loss resulting from the necessity of unraveling theedge on heel por-.

tions B and in portion E at the bottom of the leg. In the embodimentillustrated in the present drawing, the needles F of the leg machine(Figure 1) always remain engaged with the bottom of leg portion heelportions B are being knitted. When the heel portions B are completed thethread corresponding to said portions is laid aside, and the entire footportion completed on the same machine, the top of the foot portionforming a continuation of and being integral with the leg portion. Asthe bottom of the sole G (Figure 2) is not joined to the heel portions Bby this method of knitting, these two parts can be sewed together asindicated at the right of Figure 2, and then the stocking completed inusual manner by sewing the entire back and bottom.

An apparatus capable of carrying out this process is illustrated inFigures 3, 1, 5, and 6. A needle bar consisting of needle holdingsections 1 and 2 is shown. These sections may move together as a unit,or one of the sections may be moved with respect to the other section,as may be desired. Movement is imparted to the needle bar as a whole inthe usual manner, section 1 being shown with depending guide lugs 3 inwhich are mounted rotatably a rod 4 connected with ,a

lever 5 secured to a shaft 6 to impart ver- A while the tical andlateral reciprocation to the needle bar as a whole in well known andusual man'- ner. Section 2 is cut away at 21 (Figure 6) to fit over areduced intermediate portion 11 of section 1, and is provided withdownwardly extending, vertical extensions 22 having inwardly extending,horizontal flanges 23 on which rest rods 24 fixed in the top of section2 and slidably extending through intermediate portion 11 of section 1.Com pression springs 30 surround rods 24 between intermediate portion 11of section 1 and inwardly extending flanges 23 of section 2 and tendnormally to keep section 2 in horizontal alignment with section 1.

During the knitting of the leg portion,

- both sections 1 and 2 reciprocate in unison.

When the leg portionA is finished, however, and it is desired to knitonly the heel portions, section 2 of the needle bar, which cor- Iresponds to the width of the leg portion between the heel portions, ismaintained above the level of the goods so that the,need 1es do notbecome disengaged therefrom. Thls may be accomplished in any desiredmanner as by a stop 40 mounted on a shaft 42 and operat ed in anydesired manner, which is swung, when the needle bar is in raisedposition, from its normal position (Figures 3 and 5) to a positionunderneath section 2 of the needle 'bar (Figures 4: and 6'). When theneedle bar then is lowered stop 40 will maintain section 2 in raisedposition so that the needles of said section will remain above the levelof the goods and will not become disengaged therefrom. The tension ofthe finished leg portion is released so that as the heel portions areknitted the needles 25 of section 2 will not tear the leg portion. Stop40 may be provided with adjustable means 41 of any desired type so thatthe proper height can be maintained. It will be seen that as the needlebar is reciprocated for forming the heel portions, section 2 always willbe maintained in upward position and with its needles in engagement withthe bottom of the leg portion.

In order to keep heel portions B under proper tension while they arebeing knitted,

I a wire or similar device 50 (Figure 4) may be slipped under eachportion after a few rows are knitted and secured to any fixed part by arubber strop 51 or similar tension device. The goods already knittedwill be held under stationary tension by the usual take-up roll (notshown) which will not be operated during the knitting of the heelportions B. When the knitting of the foot part is resumed, the soleportions, outside the middle portion connected directly with the take-uproll, will be engaged by the regular hook bar (not shown) to providenecessary tension therefor.

When the heel portions are completed it then is necessary only to startknitting the sole and top of the foot as indicated in dotted lines atthe left of Figure 2 to complete the knitting of the hose on the singleleg machine. When removed from the machine the heel and sole parts aresewedtogether as indicated at the right of Figure 2 and then the entireback and sole sewed together to form the completed hose in customarymanner.

The additional parts shown in Figures 5 and 6 of the drawings arestandard appliances. 50 indicates a thread carrier of the usual type, 51sinkers of the usual type to push the thread between the needles, 52 theknocking-over bits to hold the goods in position, and 53 the usualpresser against which the needles are pressed to close their springloop.

The knitting machine will also be understood as having the usualnarrowing fingers for the purpose of picking up the stitch from a needle25 and moving it over to the next needle; four of such narrowing fingersare usually employed, one at each end of the needle bar and two adjacentthesection 2 thereof. When the machine is operating with the section 2of the needle bar maintained in raised position, the two centralnarrowing fingers may be spread apart in any suitable manner which it isnot considered necessary to describe in detail, to prevent interferencewith the section 2 of the needlebar.

Many modifications of my invention will be apparent to those skilled inthe art without departing therefrom or from the scope of the claims, myinvention not being limited to the particular embodiment chosen forpurposes of illustration but consisting of the process and oneembodiment of an apparatus therefor capable of completing the knittedportion of a stocking on one machine without the necessity of change.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a knitting machine, a needle bar having a part of its needlesupporting side cut away to provide a reduced portion in said bar, aneedle bar section located in said cut away part and adapted to seatagainst said reduced portion, a guide member engaging between saidneedle bar section and the needle bar permitting said section to sliderelative to the needle bar substantially in the plane of the needles,and a stop member adapted to engage the needle bar section to hold thelatter against reciprocation with the needle bar.

2. In a knitting machine, a needle bar having a part of its needlesup-porting side cut away to provide a reduced portion in said bar, aneedle bar section located in said cut away part and adapted to seatagainst said reducedportion, a spring yieldingly urging said sectionagainst said reduced portion, a guide member engaging between saidneedle bar section and the needle bar permitting said section to sliderelative to the needle bar substantially in the plane of the needles,and a stop member adapted to engage the needle bar section to hold thelatter against reciprocation with the needle bar.

3. In a knitting machine, a needle bar having a part of its needlesupporting side cut away to provide a reduced portion in said bar, aneedle bar section located in said cut away part and adapted to seatagainst said reduced portion, a guide member engaging between saidneedle bar section and the needle bar permitting said section to sliderelative to the needle bar substantially in the plane of the needles, astop member adapted .to engage the needle bar section to hold the latteragainst reciprocation with the needle bar, and a special tension deviceengageable with the goods being knitted on the needle bar when theneedle bar sectlon 1s held against reciprocation as aforesaid.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing, I have hereunto set myhand this30th day of June 1923.

RANDOLPH C. GEBERS.

